A VAN driver suffered serious burns after it caught fire when a lorry driven by a Crewe man crashed on a snow-hit Midlands motorway.

The Mercedes Benz articulated lorry was unable to stop and ploughed into the Transit between junctions 11 and 12 of the M40 at Stratford, a court heard.

The van was stationary in lane one due to adverse weather and a traffic backlog from a previous accident.

Lawrence Grindley, 64, of Lodgefields Drive, Crewe, appeared before Nuneaton magistrates on Tuesday last week after admitting by post driving without due care and attention just before 6am on November 27 last year.

The case had been adjourned for him to appear in court because magistrates were considering disqualification.

Prosecutor Steve Parish said the van driver sustained cuts to his head and legs, bruising to his nose, and suffered very severe headaches, sore ribs and whiplash injuries.

A passenger in the van had injuries to his face, neck, back and left side.

The Transit was completely burnt out.

Grindley accepted he had been travelling at 40mph in ‘terrible weather’.

Kiera Gore, defending, said her client was ‘acutely aware’ of the injuries caused.

She said: “Mr Grindley is doubly sorry for those injuries and he wishes me to extend his sincere apologies to them.”

Miss Gore said the early morning accident took place in poor visibility.

“Mr Grindley failed to see the Transit van and to stop in time. He wasn’t drunk and had had sufficient rest breaks.

“He had a momentary lapse of concentration,” she said.

Miss Gore said Grindley, a HGV driver 43 years, had a good driving history. “He’s not a reckless person. He made a mistake – a mistake that’s deeply affected him.

She said Grindley ran to assist the trapped driver.

“He pulled the driver from the van while it was on fire. In doing so he clearly showed his remorse and his concern for the welfare of those in the van. He put himself in danger to help.”

Miss Gore said Grindley had been traumatised by the accident, needed months of counselling and had taken early retirement.

In a letter read to the previous court hearing, Grindley said he did not think the road had been gritted.

He got the van driver out, carried him to lane three and covered him in snow to soothe his burns.

He said it was his first accident on a motorway and he had not been back to work since.